PHOTOS: Total Pandemonium At Apple's Flagship Store For The iPhone 5 Launch

Apple's Fifth Avenue flagship store in New York City, with its iconic glass cube, is the most famous Apple retail store on the planet.

So, it shouldn't be a surprise that there was an absolutely crazy scene at the store for the launch of the iPhone 5.

We were at the store this morning — take a look at what we saw.

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The Fifth Avenue Apple Store is normally open 24/7, 365 days a year — but it's closed for a while today.

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TV news vans were all lined up on the curb. The place was packed with media.

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An epic line snaked away from the famous glass cube, filled with resellers, spot-holders and superfans alike.

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Some were sleeping.

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Others knocked back coffee.

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An Apple photographer scurried around taking photos of everything, behind the security that kept the media at bay.

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Of course, the NYPD was there to keep everybody safe.

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The line meandered away from the store toward Madison Ave.

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Representatives from Gazelle were out talking to people throughout the line to tell people about their service — they buy old iPhones and give you cash for them.

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One girl was trying to convince someone to let her cut the line.

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In fact, it reached all the way to Madison Ave. That's a whole, long block.

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A bunch of people in line had these yellow OtterBox shirts on.

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All the Apple Store employees had these on. They promoted different Apple services.

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The clock neared 8 AM, but some folks were still passed out.

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Getting organized. Almost time to go...

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Inside, beneath the cube, the Apple workers were shouting, and frequently leading huge cheers.

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There were some high-fives during the calm before the storm.

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8 AM. Pandemonium.

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Pretty much everyone near the front had a smile on their face as they were cheered on by the blue shirts.

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They came forward in waves, led by Apple folks.

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A few minutes later, green dude (that's Greg Packer, a guy famous for always being at the front of lines) came back upstairs. Aha, an iPhone 5! The crowd — and the photographers and cameramen in the pit — loved it.

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And there it is, unboxed and booting up.

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Lifted up in the air in triumph.

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This guy had a plush pig. We don't know why he had a pig, but he had a pig.

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This spiky-haired Apple fan attracted a lot of attention too.

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Meanwhile, there was a drone hovering above, pointed at the entrance of the cube.

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Apple fans kept rolling out of the store grinning, lifting their iPhone 5s in the air and posing for the cameras.

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Inside, Apple didn't let the store get too packed though. There was room to walk around — except at the Genius Bar.

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It was totally overrun, even though workers were using all tables to help people buy their iPhone 5s.

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Hey! A white iPhone 5.

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Onlookers loomed above, recording the frenzy below.

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The hundreds of Apple employees were constantly churning out sales during the rush.

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They also did walkthroughs on the new phones.

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Many paid with cash — lots of cash.

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Aww, one customer brought her pet into the store. The dog seemed happy, albeit overwhelmed.

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On the way out, the NYPD was giving away forms with information about cell phone safety and how to register yours.